Czech Post workers strike for higher wages

Czech Post employees have joined a chain strike in demand for better wages.
According to the state company’s spokeswoman, the strike has not affected
services at counters, although it may delay delivery of parcels ahead of
Christmas.

Photo: CTK
Around 250 Czech post employees at the company’s central sorting office
in Prague’s Malešice participated in the planned strike in the early
hours of Thursday and several dozen employees in Ústí nad Labem, Brno and
Olomouc have joined the strike during the day, the head of the strike
committee Evžen Dvorský told the Czech News Agency on Thursday.

Figures provided by Czech Post are somewhat lower; according to the
company’s spokeswoman Eva Krejčí, some 84 employees have joined the
protest so far.

The chain strike is to last for an hour at each facility before moving on
to the next site until midnight on Thursday. The Czech Post union members
recorded over 600 people on Wednesday night who said they would join the
strike. They are expecting the number of protesters will rise throughout
the day. According to the deputy head of the strike committee, Filip
Janovský, a silent protest is also set to take place.

All three of the country’s postal trade unions have been pushing for a
wage increase for workers by 2,500 crowns a month. Prime Minister Bohuslav
Sobotka and Interior Minister Milan Chovanec, under whose administration
the state owned company falls, have described these demands as unrealistic
in view of the company’s economic results. Employees have been promised a
raise of just over 500 crowns a month.

The average wage in the company is currently between 22,700 and 23,000
crowns, that is more than 4,000 crowns less than the national average with
many postal workers earning far below that average.

Photo: CTK
According to Czech Radio news site, several union members say Czech Post
was threatening employees with fines if they joined the strike. According
to Mr.Janovský, the unions received several hundred complaints over such
threats. He also said the unions were considering filing charges against
their employer.

Czech Post spokesman Matyáš Vitík has denied the claims, adding that
Czech Post will suffer damages to the tune of millions of crowns a day due
to the protests.